BNP headquarters looks ‘deserted’ after party forms government

Party workers feel “orphaned” as senior leaders skip party headquarters after returning to power

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party has returned to power after almost two decades, with an unfamiliar scene unfolding at its headquarters.

The once-bustling central office at Naya Paltan is now devoid of leaders and activists, with staff passing idle hours.

Visits at 11am and again at 2:30pm on Sunday found the office barely occupied.

Tobarak Hossain, a BNP activist from Narayanganj, voiced his frustration.

“The party has formed the government with a majority. If this is the state of the party now, if leaders forget the address of the Naya Paltan office, where will we go?” he said.

Office staff revealed that senior leaders are no longer regularly attending the headquarters.

A staff member said the party’s Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, who is in charge of office affairs, has been unwell and is not coming to work.

“Since forming the government, leaders are not coming as before, and activists are also visiting less frequently. You could say we have become almost orphaned,” he said.

“The secretary general is expected to come tomorrow,” he added.

With few leaders or activists present, staff say their workload has declined.

Reminiscing the times when the office was teeming with party leaders, an employee said: “As leaders no longer come, we don’t even have to worry about keeping hot water ready in the kettle. There are hardly any calls for tea now.”

BNP Chairperson Tarique Rahman took oath as prime minister on Feb 17.

Other leaders were sworn in as ministers and state ministers the same day.

Although many activists had gathered at the headquarters that day, the office has since seen little activity, said security personnel.